It is one day the kid in Johnson, 28, comes out. The Texans' star receiver, who grew up in Miami, remembers a time his family couldn't afford to buy him what he wanted for Christmas.

“I never got all I wanted for Christmas — I know how that feels — so it makes me feel good that I can make some kids' Christmas better by giving them whatever they want,” Johnson said. “It's one of the best days in the year for me. It's really, really important to me.”

As you might imagine, the youngsters at Toys R Us this week are huge Johnson fans. Huge.

Heartfelt endorsement

A darling young girl at the event gushed that Johnson is “the bestest football player in all eternity.”

She is just about right.

He is among the bestest today, and by far the bestest in Texans history.

Now able to buy whatever he wants for Christmas, what Johnson wants most — a trip to the playoffs — can't be bought.

The Texans have an outside shot at making the postseason. They basically need to win every game and have quite a few teams lose some games.

Realistically, though, Johnson knows he is about to close his seventh season in the NFL without a playoff appearance. Again.

“Oh, it's frustrating,” Johnson said. “But what can I do? I think I do all I can, but I wonder what else I can do. You just say to yourself, ‘What can I do?' ”

At some point, you might think Johnson would lash out at an organization that has made so many mistakes over the years, some of which Johnson says were obvious to him.

“There are times they do things that have me scratching my head,” Johnson said. “I can't lie about that. I mean, really scratching my head.”

“There are times I am sitting around wondering if it is ever going to happen here.

“Do I have to go to another team for it to happen?”

As frustrating as it is — as much as he wants to make the playoffs and win the Super Bowl — Johnson says right now he just can't imagine doing it in another jersey.

“You don't want to go jumping from team to team looking for it, that's crazy,” Johnson said. “There are some guys who play for a different team every other year.

“That's not me. I don't want my career to be like that.”

Texans fans appreciate that Johnson isn't like many others. He might not be the typical diva wideout, but Johnson has more personality than many know.

His friends often rag him about the too-sweet persona he has been given because they know he talks a lot more than people realize. Opponents know it too.

He leads the NFL in receiving yards with 1,237 (on 81 catches), and is primed to become the first to do so in consecutive seasons since Jerry Rice in 1994-95.

Johnson has 13 10-catch, 100-yard games in his career, which according to ESPN Stats and Information ties him for third (with Tim Brown) in the NFL since the 1970 merger, behind Jerry Rice (15) and Marvin Harrison (14).

Spectacular numbers

Sunday at St. Louis will be Johnson's 100th game as a pro. Rice played in 303 games, Harrison 190 and Brown 255.

With his next touchdown grab Johnson will break his team record for scores in a season.

If you don't know, you should ask. Johnson is on the short list of the greatest athletes in Houston sports history.

The stats don't mean that much to him.

Johnson agrees with Bill Belichick, who this week said, “Stats are for losers.”

“Numbers are great, but everybody wants to win, that's the reason we play,” Johnson said. “Coming to a new franchise, I knew that it wasn't going to be perfect, but man, I thought it would be better sooner.

“Then again, that has kept me motivated and wanting to be here. You don't want to leave and then it happens.

“Then I'd be upset that I put so much into this organization and then it would just all backfire when the Texans make the playoffs and I'm somewhere else.

“There are definitely times you think about all the scenarios, but right now I don't think I'll be going anywhere else … right now.

“Of course you can go into the offseason, wake up and see that you've been traded.”

Johnson was smiling when he said that. Hey Dre', that's not funny.

The Texans have made many mistakes, but no way they would trade the bestest.